Observation of the second harmonic in the phase dependence of a superconducting current in Nb/Au/YBCO heterojunctions

The second harmonic in the dependence of a superconducting current on the phase difference of superconducting wave functions of the electrodes was observed experimentally in Nb/Au/(001)YBa₂Cu₃O_x heterojunctions. Possible reasons for its appearance were discussed within the framework of a mixed (d±s) symmetry order parameter of YBa₂Cu₃O_x.     

Temperature behavior of electron transport in normal-metal-HTSC heterojunctions

Current transport in micron-sized normal-metal-high-temperature superconductor heterojunctions (Au/YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x ) was studied for two crystallographic orientations of YBCO films. It is shown that depending on the transport-current flow direction relative to the crystallographic axes of the YBCO film, the electronic transport properties of Au/YBCO heterojunctions with highly transparent boundaries change from quasi-tunneling (along the YBCO c axis) to close-to-Ohmic (in the directions lying in the YBCO basal plane).     

Current transport along the [001] axis of YBCO in low-temperature superconductor-normal metal-high-temperature superconductor heterostructures

The electrophysical properties of heterojunctions several microns in size, obtained by successive deposition of the metal-oxide high-temperature superconductor YBa₂Cu₃O_x, a normal metal Au, and the low-temperature superconductor Nb, were studied experimentally. Current flows in the [001] direction of the epitaxial YBa₂Cu₃O_x film. It is shown, by comparing the experimental data with existing theoretical calculations, that for the experimentally realizable transmittances (D̄=10⁻⁵–10⁻⁶) of the YBa₂Cu₃O_x—normal metal boundary the critical current of the entire heterostructure is low (of the order of the fluctuation current) because of a sharp change in the amplitude of the potential of the superconducting carriers at this boundary. The current-voltage characteristics of the heterostructure studied correspond to tunnel junctions consisting of a superconductor with type symmetry of the superconducting wave function and a normal metal. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 116, 2140–2149 (December 1999)     

Superconducting current in hybrid heterojunctions of metal-oxide superconductors: Size and frequency dependences

We have detected experimentally considerable deviations of the frequency dependences of the Shapiro step amplitudes and the critical current of Nb/Au/YBa₂Cu₃O_x thin-film hybrid Josephson heterojunctions prepared on YBa₂Cu₃O_x metal-oxide superconductor films with a tilted c axis from the regularities inherent in Josephson junctions of traditional superconductors with an s-symmetry of the order parameter. It is shown that possible formation of “splintered” fluxons with a size λ_s<λ_J due to faceting of the interface and formation of a chain of nanosize 0 and π junctions must be taken into account in describing processes in lumped heterojunctions (whose size L is smaller than the Josephson penetration depth λ_J determined from the averaged value of the critical current density). For heterojunctions with a size λ_s < L < λ_J, a substantial decrease in the maximal amplitude of the first Shapiro step with increasing voltage (Josephson oscillation frequency) is observed at voltages much smaller than the energy gap in niobium (V « Δ_Nb/e); this effect is manifested most strongly when the size L is greater than λ_s. A fractional Shapiro step and a subharmonic detector response have been observed in the current-voltage characteristics of heterojunctions; the dynamic processes responsible for their emergence and indicating the presence of the second harmonic in the current-phase relation are studied. It is shown that the effect of interface faceting on the current-phase relation increases with a heterojunction size L>λ_s.     

Nonlinearity of the current-voltage characteristics for YBa2Cu3O7–x single crystals and the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition

The nonlinearity of the current-voltage characteristics for YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} single crystals is investigated in the vicinity of the superconducting transition temperature T _c , and the mechanisms responsible for the nonlinearity of the current-voltage characteristics are considered. The current-voltage characteristics and the amplitudes of the higher voltage harmonics for the YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} single crystals are directly measured using modulation Fourier analysis. It is shown that the positions of the maxima in the amplitudes of the higher voltage harmonics coincide with the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition temperature T _BKT. This coincidence can provide a means for determining the transition temperature T _BKT. A number of parameters characterizing the YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} single crystals in the superconducting state are estimated using the experimental results and the model of a Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition. The parameters thus estimated are in good agreement with the data available in the literature.     

Anomalous proximity effect in superconducting oxide structures with an antiferromagnetic layer

The electrophysical parameters of superconductor/antiferromagnetic insulator structures based on the Nb/Au/Ca_1?x Sr _x CuO₂/YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ hybrid heterostructure have been examined. YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ and Ca_1?x Sr _x SuO₂ epitaxial films are grown by the laser ablation method on NdGaO₃ single crystal substrates, the thickness of the Ca_1?x Sr _x CuO₂ layer varies from 20 to 50 nm, and x = 0.15 and 0.5. The superconducting pair potential in the interface between the YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ superconductor and Ca_1?x Sr _x CuO₂ antiferromagnet is found to penetrate into the antiferromagnet at distances much larger than the coherence length calculated for the ferromagnetic layer. The critical current of the superconducting transition manufactured at such an interface is highly sensitive to the magnetic field.     

Magnetic response of ferromagnet-superconductor bilayers

Magnetic measurements on a ferromagnet/insulator/superconductor (La_2/3Ca_1/3MnO₃/SrTiO₃/YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x) structures were performed with the field applied parallel to the plane of the film. We observed an evidence of a modification of the ferromagnetic domain structure in the magnetic layer induced by the superconducting transition in the neighboring superconducting YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x layer.     

Magnetically dependent superconducting transport in oxide heterostructures with an antiferromagnetic layer

The superconducting current in hybrid superconducting structures Nb/Au/Ca_1?x Sr _x CuO₂/YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ with an antiferromagnetic layer is experimentally shown to have a Josephson nature, and the deviation from the sinusoidal dependence of the superconducting current on the phase difference between superconducting electrodes is about 20% of the second harmonic. These heterostructures are found to have sensitivity to an applied magnetic field that is much higher than that of conventional Josephson junctions. The experimental shape of the magnetic-field dependence of the critical current in the heterostructures differs from the usual Fraunhofer shape by oscillation with a significantly smaller period along a magnetic field.     

Interfaces in superconducting hybrid heterostructures with an antiferromagnetic interlayer

The structural, X-ray diffraction, and electrophysical studies of hybrid superconducting hetero-structures with an interlayer of cuprate antiferromagnetic Ca_{1 ? x} Sr _x CuO₂ (CSCO) with the upper electrode Nb/Au and the lower electrode Y_Ba₂Cu₃O_{7 ? δ} (YBCO) have been carried out. It has been experimentally shown that the epitaxial growth of two cuprates, YBCO and CSCO, results in the formation of an interface on which the enrichment of the CSCO interlayer with charge carriers proceeds to a depth of about 20 nm. In this case, the conduction of the enriched CSCO region proves to be closer to metallic, whereas the CSCO film deposited onto the NdGaO₃ substrate is a Mott insulator with hopping conduction.     

Analysis of nonlinearity of magnetization of YBa2Cu3O7 − x by the magnetic field modulation method

Temperature dependences of the magnetization harmonics of YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} monodomain samples are studied experimentally at temperatures of 77–120 K. It is found that nonlinearity of magnetization of YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} (higher harmonics generation) is observed up to temperatures T = 103–112 K, which are much higher than the superconducting transition temperature of this compound. At the same temperatures, the temperature dependence of resistivity begins to deviate from linearity. The observed singularity of the magnetization of YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} is associated with the emergence of a pseudogap state in this compound.     

Fluctuation induced magneto-conductivity studies in YBa2Cu3O7−δ + xBaZrO3 composite high-Tc superconductors

Fluctuations on the electrical conductivity of polycrystalline YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ + xBaZrO₃ (x = 1.0, 2.5, 5.0 and 10.0 wt.%) superconductors were investigated from the resistivity vs. temperature data for zero field and 8 T (Tesla) external magnetic fields. Attempts have been made to identify the optimum inclusion of BaZrO₃ (BZO) in YBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ (YBCO) superconductors. The phase formation, texture and grain alignments were analyzed by XRD and SEM techniques. Then the effects of superconducting fluctuations on the electrical conductivity of granular composite superconductors were studied for zero field and 8 T external magnetic fields. Though inclusions of BZO sub-micron particles are not expected to influence superconducting order-parameter fluctuation (SCOPF) much, the transition from 2D to 3D of the order parameter in the mean-field region depends on the BZO content in the composites. It has been observed that BZO residing at the grain boundary of YBCO matrix influences the tailing region without having significant change in the mean-field critical temperature. In the present work, attention has been focused mostly in the experimental domain relatively above the T_c. It reveals that, 1 wt.% composite exhibits a better superconducting property in comparison with pure YBCO.     

Magnetization harmonics for YBa<Subscript>2</Subscript>Cu<Subscript>3</Subscript>O<Subscript>7 − <Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript> textured polycrystals above the superconducting transition temperature

The temperature dependences of the third and other higher magnetization harmonics for YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} textured polycrystals are experimentally investigated in the temperature range 77–120 K. It is revealed that the magnetization of the YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} textured polycrystals exhibits a nonlinear behavior up to temperatures considerably higher than the superconducting transition temperature. The observed nonlinearity of the magnetization of the YBa₂Cu₃O_{7 ? x} textured polycrystals is attributed to the pseudogap state that appears for this compound at a temperature T ～ 102 K.     

Effects of indium doping on the superconducting properties of YBa2Cu3Oy sintered compounds and thin films

We investigated the effects of indium doping on the superconducting properties of YBCO sintered samples and thin films. In₂O₃-doped YBCO and YBa₂Cu_3−xIn_xO_y sintered samples showed a gradual decrease in the critical temperature (T_c) with increasing indium content; however, a T_c value above 80 K was maintained even up to 30 vol.% addition and x = 0.4, respectively. Ba₃Cu₃In₄O₁₂ was detected by X-ray diffractometry and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy as a reaction product for both sintered samples. The normalized J_c under a magnetic field of 0.1 T showed a maximum at x = 0.3. Indium-doped YBCO films prepared by pulsed laser deposition showed a similar dependence of T_c on indium content as the sintered samples.     

Fluctuation conductivity along the c-axis and parallel to the ab-planes in melt-textured YBa2Cu3O7−δ samples doped with Y211 phase

We report measurements of in-plane and out-of-plane fluctuation conductivity under low applied magnetic fields up to 500 Oe in two melt-textured YBa₂Cu₃O_7−δ (YBCO) samples. 3D-Gaussian and genuine critical 3D-XY-E fluctuation regimes were identified in the conductivity parallel to the ab plane. In addition, a regime beyond 3D-XY was observed in the immediate vicinity of the superconducting transition of the in-plane fluctuation conductivity. The 3D-XY-E scaling was also identified in the fluctuation conductivity along the c-axis in the sample with smaller content of the Y₂BaCuO₅ (Y211) phase. This result indicates that the superconducting state in YBCO has a three-dimensional character, in contradiction to some studies suggesting that critical phenomenology is fundamentally distinct in orientations parallel or perpendicular to the Cu-O₂ planes of the high-temperature superconductors. However, the results suggests the presence of a sub-dominant order-parameter component in YBCO that has an appreciable projection along the c-axis.     

Hole doping by Li substitution and antiferromagnetism in YBa Cu O studied by neutron powder diffraction measurements

The magnetic structure of tetragonal insulating YBa₂Cu_3-xLi_xO_y has been studied as a function of x and y. The Néel temperature and the mean ordered magnetic moment on the Cu2 sites were determined by neutron powder diffraction measurements. The decrease of these two parameters as compared to YBa₂Cu₃O₆ is much stronger for lithium than for zinc substitution. The difference is quantitatively explained by the presence of holes created in the CuO₂ planes. These holes arise from the substitution of plane Cu²⁺ by Li⁺. We suggest an explanation why such holes are not seen for the same substitution of plane Cu²⁺ by Li⁺ in orthorhombic superconducting YBa₂Cu_3-xLi_xO _{7 - δ} . Received 31 October 2001 and Received in final form 6 March 2002 Published online 25 June 2002     

On the high-resistivity contacts to YBa2Cu3O7 thin films, electrical behavior in the regime of high temperatures and high-bias voltages

We prepared in-situ Au contacts on high-quality epitaxial YBa₂Cu₃O₇ (YBCO) films. Very high specific contact resistivity values up to ∼10⁻² Ω cm² at 4.2 K were obtained on 12×5 μm² contact areas. This resistivity value decreased by two orders of magnitude as the temperature was raised to room temperature. In the temperature range T<200 K, the contacts showed non-ohmic behavior suggesting the presence of a well-defined insulating native Y-Ba-Cu-O barrier between the two electrodes. The electrical transport in this barrier layer was analyzed in the limit of high temperatures and high voltages to follow Mott's variable-range hopping conduction mechanism with physically reasonable parameters describing the localized states in the barrier. The high-resistivity contacts were tested successfully in quasiparticles injection experiments where the critical current I_c of the YBCO microbridge could be strongly suppressed on injection of an additional current through the contact into the superconducting channel.     

Positive muon sites and possibility of anyons in the YBa2Cu3O x system

Possible positive muon sites in YBa₂Cu₃O _x were determined from the observedμ ⁺ hyperfine fields in antiferromagnetically ordered YBa₂Cu₃O _x and GdBa₂Cu₃O₇. After determining theμ ⁺ sites, the possibility of anyons or chiral spin ordering in the superconducting YBa₂Cu₃O₇ is discussed. Positive muon implanted in YBa₂Cu₃O₇ feel static magnetic fields of average 1.4G, which are explicable in terms of nuclear magnetic dipolar fields. Non observation of static local magnetic fields of electronic origin (the upper limit is the order of 0.1 G) means that anyons or chiral spin ordering might not exist in superconducting YBa₂Cu₃O₇.     

Increased critical current density and pinning in thick Ag/YBa2Cu3O7−x multilayers

We have investigated the superconducting properties of Ag/YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x thick multilayers grown by Pulsed Laser Deposition, and found that the artificial pinning centres induced by Ag nanodots lead to a significant increase in critical current, especially in high applied magnetic fields. Transmission Electron Microscopy showed a columnar growth of YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x induced by Ag nanodots, while angle-dependent transport measurements revealed the existence of strong, both isotropic and c-axis correlated, artificial pinning centres.     

Detection of YBa<Subscript>2</Subscript>Cu<Subscript>3</Subscript>O<Subscript>7−x</Subscript> magnetization nonlinearity in a pseudogap region

The temperature dependences of magnetization higher harmonics were studied experimentally in single-domain YBa₂Cu₃O_7?x samples above T _c . YBa₂Cu₃O_7?x magnetization nonlinearity was found in different samples up to temperatures T = 103–112 K, which is much higher than the temperature of transition into the superconducting state of the given compound. The observed specific feature of YBa₂Cu₃O_7?x magnetization is associated with the occurrence of pseudogap state in this compound.     

Two-magnon Raman scattering in dielectric and superconducting YBa2Cu3O6+x crystals

Two-magnon Raman scattering in dielectric, as well as superconducting, YBa₂Cu₃O_{6 + x} single crystals with mobile oxygen content x = 0.2–0.7 and superconducting transition temperature T _c = 0–74 K is studied in detail. Doping with oxygen in the range of x = 0.2–0.5 leads to two-magnon scattering peak broadening and a shift in the spectral position of the peak towards lower energies. The most significant qualitative changes in two-magnon scattering in YBa₂Cu₃O_{6 + x} crystals are observed in a narrow oxygen concentration range near x = 0.7. This is explained by a considerable decrease in the correlation length ξ_AF of antiferromagnetic (AF) correlations upon an increase in the concentration of free carriers. For instance, doping is accompanied with a reduction of ξ_AF to values of several lattice constants a for x ≈ 0.7, a transition to the regime of short-range AF order, and local scattering of light from a small AF cluster with a size of 3 × 4 lattice constants. An increase in the free charge carrier concentration destroys the short-range AF order in a narrow range of the stoichiometry index near x = 0.7. Experimental data also indicate heterogeneity of cuprate planes at microscopic level, which leads to coexistence of superconducting and AF regions in YBa₂Cu₃O_{6 + x} super-conducting crystals.